Overview

The evolution of medicine in ancient Greece was directed by a combination of knowledge, beliefs, and rituals handed down from previous civilizations and cultures, and newly developed and ever changing philosophical principles. The Greeks adopted the beliefs and practices of many other civilizations. They borrowed the idea of a godlike figure that dispensed all medical wisdom from the Egyptians. This eventually developed into the concept of their own medical knowledge god, Asclepius. Their symbol of healing, a serpent wrapped around a staff, and much of their hygienic practices were taken from the Minoan culture. Ancient Mesopotamia provided the belief that evil spirits invaded the body to cause sickness, which in turn supported the notion that only gods could then cure that sickness. However, the Greeks also made their own significant contributions to medical knowledge and thought.

The ancient Greeks...